Experts Available to Discuss Texas Governor's Race

The 2010 Texas governor's race promises to be an historic contest as U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison challenges incumbent Rick Perry for the Republican nomination and several Democrats vie to run against the GOP candidate next November.

The University of Texas at Austin has experts available to discuss various aspects of the race, from politics to policy, with members of the media. Below is a list of faculty members and their areas of expertise.

For additional information or assistance, please contact Gary Susswein, director of public affairs in the College of Liberal Arts, at 512-471-4945, susswein@austin.utexas.edu.

STATEWIDE POLITICS AND ELECTIONS

James Henson
Director, Texas Politics Project and Lecturer in the Department of Government
College of Liberal Arts
512-471-0090j.henson@austin.utexas.edu

Henson runs the Texas Politics Project, which seeks to educate students and Texans about state government, politics and history through a dynamic Web site and a speaker series. It also conducts quarterly statewide issues polls.

Shaw was an analyst and consultant in the 1992, 2000 and 2004 presidential campaigns. He has written two books on voters and election campaigns and teaches classes on survey research analysis, public opinion and voting behavior, campaigns and elections, political parties and American government.

Buchanan is a nationally renowned expert on politics and government. He has written multiple books on the American presidency and is frequently quoted in media stories about state and national politics.

Sherri Greenberg
Lecturer and Center for Politics and Governance Fellow, the Max Sherman Fellow in State and Local Government
LBJ School of Public Affairs
512-471-8324srgreenberg@mail.utexas.edu

Greenberg served for 10 years in the Texas House of Representatives, from 1991 to 2001. She chaired the House Pensions and Investments Committee and the Select Committee on Teacher Health Insurance and was a member on the House Appropriations Committee.

Paul Stekler
Professor of Public Affairs and Professor of Radio-Television-Film
LBJ School of Public Affairs, College of Communication
512-471-6679stek@mail.utexas.edu

Stekler is an award-winning documentary filmmaker whose work includes "George Wallace: Settin' the Woods on Fire," "Last Man Standing: Politics, Texas Style" and "Vote for Me: Politics in America," a four-hour PBS special about grassroots electoral politics.

Sean Theriault
Associate Professor of Government
College of Liberal Arts
512-232-7279seant@mail.utexas.edu

Theriault's research includes American political institutions, primarily U.S. Congress. He also studies party polarization in the U.S. Congress. An award-winning teachers He has also published articles on subjects ranging from presidential rhetoric to congressional careers and the Louisiana.

USE OF NEW MEDIA

Homero Gil de Zuniga
Assistant Professor of Journalism
College of Communication
512-471-0553hgz@mail.utexas.edu

De Zuniga's research revolves around new media consumption (podcasts, blogs, etc.) and the role it plays in political and civic engagement among individuals. His work examines the implications of new media use at political and civic participatory levels and whether they will get someone to the polls.

Brands has written more than 20 books on such leaders as Benjamin Franklin, Andrew Jackson and Theodore Roosevelt. He was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for his most recent book "Traitor to His Class: The Privileged Life and Radical Presidency of Franklin Delano Roosevelt."

Stroud studies the media's role in shaping people's political attitudes and behaviors. Her forthcoming book, "Niche News" (Oxford University Press, 2011) explores the causes, consequences and prevalence of partisan selective exposure, and the preference for like-minded political information.

Roberts' research has focused on politics and financial markets, corporate political participation, and distributive politics. He teaches a course on money in U.S. politics and has published papers in political science, economics and finance.

Jones' research centers on the study of public policy processes, American governing institutions, and the connection between human decision-making and organizational behavior. He is a director of the Policy Agendas Project, which is housed at The University of Texas at Austin. The project is the major resource for examining changes in public policy processes in American national institutions.

Walton researches intelligent transportation systems and studies engineering, planning, operations and policy analysis. He is chairman of the Texas Department of Transportation's "2030 Committee," which is overseeing a comprehensive update of Texas' transportation needs through 2030.

Bhat conducts mathematical modeling of how people make decisions about travel. His models evaluate the effectiveness of alternative traffic congestion alleviation strategies such as telecommuting, work schedule changes, toll roads, ridesharing incentives and non-motorized travel such as bicycling and walking.

ENERGY AND THE ENVIRONMENT

David Eaton
The Bess Harris Jones Centennial Professor in Natural Resource Policy Studies
LBJ School of Public Affairs
512-471-8972eaton@mail.utexas.edu

Eaton teaches a course on environmental and energy policy and has written on rural water supply, international water resource conflicts, energy management and environmental problems of industries.

Michael Webber
Assistant Professor of Mechanical Engineering, Associate Director of the Center for International Energy and Environmental Policy
Cockrell School of Engineering
512-475-6867webber@mail.utexas.edu

Webber's research includes energy policy, energy and water, alternative and renewable energy, biofuels and energy in Texas. The Center for International Energy and Environmental Policy seeks to inform the energy and environmental policy-making process with scientific and engineering expertise.

McKinney develops methods to simulate, optimize and analyze environmental and water resource management problems. He concentrates on trans-boundary water and environmental issues, including along the United States-Mexico border. He is interested in the relationship between economic development and environmental protection and is developing a comprehensive database about water quality and flow in the Rio Grande.

David Maidment
The Hussein M. Alharthy Centennial Chair in Civil Engineering
Cockrell School of Engineering
512-471-0072maidment@mail.utexas.edu

Maidment directs the Center for Research in Water Resources. His research includes water-quality modeling, water resources assessment, hydrologic simulation, global hydrology and the interaction between surface water and groundwater.

HEALTH CARE

John Mckiernan-González
Assistant Professor of History
College of Liberal Arts
512-475-7260tulua@mail.utexas.edu

Mckiernan-González studies the intersection of public health, civil rights and social movements. He has done research on 19th and 20th popular mobilization and American public health policies at the Mexican border, race and cross-border labor politics, and Latino public history.

David Warner
The Wilbur J. Cohen Professor in Health and Social Policy
LBJ School of Public Affairs
512-471-6277david.warner@mail.utexas.edu

Warner's major teaching and research interests are in economics, health policy and health finance. He has been a consultant to a number of organizations in the health sector, and is a former member of the Board of Directors of Austin's Brackenridge Hospital.

EDUCATION

Jane Lincove
Assistant Professor of Public Affairs
LBJ School of Public Affairs
Phone: 512-232-2561
Email: lincove@mail.utexas.edu

Lincove's research focuses on education policy and the economics of education in the U.S. and in developing countries. She has also worked for several non-profit children's advocacy organizations.

Ferreira-Buckley teaches courses in writing, histories and theories of rhetoric and literacy, writing pedagogy and Victorian literature. She has published on the history of rhetoric and is at work on a book on the rhetorical education of Barbara Jordan.

ECONOMY AND LABOR

Daniel Hamermesh
The Sue Killam Professor in the Foundations of Economics, Population Research Center faculty
College of Liberal Arts
512-475-8526hamermes@eco.utexas.edu

Hamermesh is an expert on economic and labor issues. A regular contributor to the New York Times' Freakonomics blog, he has done research on labor demand, time use, social insurance programs and the American Time Use Survey.

Brandl is an expert on the Texas economy and economic issues relevant to a gubernatorial political debate. His research interests include economic growth, financial economics and labor economics. He was recently a source for the Economist's special section on the Texas economy.

RACE AND RELIGION IN POLITICS

Christopher Ellison
Professor of Sociology, Population Research Center faculty
College of Liberal Arts
512-232-6312cellison@prc.utexas.edu

Ellison's research into the role of religion in society has included studies on regional and religious variations in public opinion and policy preferences. He is co-editor of Religion, Families, and Health: New Directions in Population-based Research.

BORDER AND IMMIGRATION

Nestor Rodriguez
Professor of Sociology, Population Research Center faculty
College of Liberal Arts
512-471-5514nrodriguez@prc.utexas.edu

Rodriguez's research focuses on Guatemalan migration, U.S. deportations to Mexico and Central America, the unauthorized migration of unaccompanied minors, evolving relations between Latinos and African Americans/Asian Americans and ethical and human rights issues of border enforcement.

Peter Ward
The C.B. Smith Sr. Centennial Chair in US-Mexico Relations; Population Research Center faculty
LBJ School of Public Affairs
512-471-6302peter.ward@mail.utexas.edu

Ward is former director of the Mexican Center of the Institute of Latin American Studies. His principal research interests are Latin American urbanization, contemporary Mexican politics, housing policy and planning, Mexico City and colonia-type agencies.

Foley's research centers on the changing constructions of race, citizenship and national identity in the American Southwest and Mexico, and comparative civil rights politics of African Americans and Mexican Americans.

Zamora has conducted research on the history of Mexicans in the United States and their relationship with Mexico, the history of the U.S. working class and Texas history. A native of the Texas-Mexico border region, Zamora speaks Spanish and is available for Spanish language interviews.

Dominguez-Ruvalcaba's areas of interest are queer Latin American Studies, gender violence in the U.S.-Mexico border and criminal organizations. A native of Mexico, he speaks Spanish and is available for Spanish language interviews.